Performing troupe warns seniors about scams

March 13, 2013|Jan Engoren jengoren@tribune.com

The grandma scam can be an email or a phone call and goes something like this: "I came here with my family for a short vacation but unfortunately, we were mugged and robbed at the hotel. All cash, credit cards and cell phones were stolen, but we still have our lives and passports."

"We've been to the embassy and the police and they have done their best. Our flight leaves in less than 12 hours, but we are having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the account, which is $2,450."

"I am contacting you to ask for a short loan, which I will refund immediately when I get my family back home safely."

Many local seniors and others have been the victim of these scams and many have given money, when it seemed as if the call or email was from a loved one.

Harriet Rubin, of Boca Pointe, who is in her late 70s, still works as a speech pathologist.

Always a ham, Rubin has always been involved in theater and works as a volunteer clown, Florabelle, at the Boca Raton Children's Museum and the Boca Raton Regional Hospital.

She was so concerned about these types of scams hurting seniors that after seeing an article in the Sun Sentinel in 2008 about this problem, decided to do something about it.

Part of an acting troupe in Bergen County, N.J., that acted out scams against seniors, Rubin figured she could do the same thing here.

"I wanted to start a troupe but didn't know how to go about it. When I saw the article, I called the reporter and she gave me the names of law enforcement officers. I called the Palm Beach Sheriff's office and asked if they would be willing to support us if I could start a group," she said. "The response was so positive. I went to the board at Boca Pointe and asked for a place to rehearse and put out an announcement for a casting call."

And voilà, The Club at Boca Pointe Performing Scam Troupe was born.

Since its inception in the summer of 2008 with eight people, the troupe has grown to a cast of 14 members, with a total of 70 performances, seen by more than 6,000 people as far away as Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Aventura.

The group was even featured on Japanese television.

The troupe performs as a community service as well as raising funds for nonprofits of their choice.

Samuel Goldstein, 61, retired from the PBSO after 36 years and now with the reserves is the officer who accompanies the troupe on their presentations.

He jumped at the chance to get involved with Rubin and her troupe.

"I've been involved in crime prevention for more than 20 years and was excited to get involved," he said. "Although I've lectured on similar topics, I thought acting and humor were a great way to get the message across."

"Harriet does a great job relaying information to prevent people from becoming victims. She is very dedicated and a no-nonsense person," Goldstein said. "She expects only the best from her actors."

David Ehrlich , 68, a retired podiatrist from Pompano Beach and Nancy Hirsch, 76, are two of those actors. Ehrlich, who had never acted before, got interested in acting and joined an acting group, Play Group, at the Lake Worth Playhouse.

One of his favorite skits is the one in which he plays the bank examiner. Ehrlich also plays the role of the grandson in the grandma skit.

"In the bank examiner skit, a so-called bank examiner asks a senior for his money, saying that he needs to mark it for theft prevention and if the senior will give him his or her money, they will be helping to fight fraud," he said.

"Harriet gets the ideas and we brainstorm," Ehrlich said. "Most of it is ad-libbed, more improv than memorizing a script."

Hirsch, who once appeared on the old traffic court TV show, said her favorite skit is another distraction scam called the Pigeon Drop, one of the oldest bait-and-switch scams. Hirsch plays the victim and says she is always shocked to learn that someone in the audience has been a victim of one or more of the scams.

"Seniors can be nervous and unaware and more gullible than the general population. Our hope is that the audience learns something and I learn, too. There is a lot of camaraderie in the group. Harriet works tirelessly and gives the group her all," she said. "I'm glad I got involved with the group. It's educational for seniors, raises money for good causes and is fun for us. We meet once a week to rehearse and it makes me feel good to help society."